Of Good and Evil
by The-Fanfiction-Princess
Summary: A long term story that begins before Fionna and Marshall Lee have even met for the first time. A fun, intense, emotional roller-coaster between Fionna, Marshall, and Prince Gumball, drawing scene parallels from the modern love triangle of "This Means War." Marshall finally meets a girl that resists his good looks, but finds out that his close friend already has his eye on her.
1. Chapter 1

Fionna found herself smiling as she wandered through the streets of the Candy Kingdom. She was walking back from one of her rare dates with _Prince Gumball._

Fionna cherished all the time she spent with Gumball, even if he just thought of her as his lab subject and on-call adventurer. Fionna could deal with that if he occasionally invited her on a date.

The day started when Gumball had invited Fionna and Cake over to test some strange new invention he'd made. Fionna never really liked being his test subject, but anything to be with Gumball was good enough for her. On the way to the Candy Castle, Cake had explained to her that she was being used. By utilizing her undying crush on him, Gumball made her do too many favors and lame jobs for him. Cake had to make it clear that is was rude for Gumball to abuse Fionna's crush on him. Fionna thought long and hard about this, and then she saw Gumball smiling towards her, and decided she didn't care.

After a long day spent experimenting, Prince Gumball graciously asked if they wanted to stay for supper. Cake, being the wonderful adopted sister that she was, saw Fionna's sparkling eyes and blushing cheeks as Gumball spoke to them. So she graciously dismissed herself.

"Oh, well I'd love to stay, honey, but I've got a pie in the oven to attend to. But feel free to stay Fi, I can manage on my own for a while." She winked at Fionna when the Prince wasn't looking and trotted back to the tree house.

Fionna had a nice date with Prince Gumball. But, it was very… boring. Peppermint Maid brought them delicious delicacies of the Candy Castle, and they ate in a sophisticated, civilized manner. But the refined way Gumball behaves just wasn't really the way that Fionna wanted to behave.

But she had no choice. Being here with him made her heart race and her cheeks turn red. She couldn't do anything else but try desperately to impress him. Despite how much she adored him, Fionna was she was never very good at keeping a conversation with Prince Gumball. They sat in many moments of silence, where Fionna squirmed and fidgeted while Gumball simply ate his dinner, not at all disturbed by the silence. Fionna on the other hand, did not like the silence.

Luckily, she still loved his company, so she didn't mind all that much. He was kind and asked her about the days adventures, which she loved to tell him about. To Fionna, the date seemed like it would last forever, just like the previous times she had spent with the prince. But, unfortunately, it never did.

When they were done, Fionna was almost sad that the uncomfortable dinner was over. The Prince walked her to the door and they stopped. He courteously opened it for her, letting in the cool evening breeze to rustle her blonde hair and cleanse her of her worries.

She was about to leave when he took her hand and brought it to his mouth. He was so regal and dignified; Fionna was simply captured by him. He kissed her hand lightly and said "Goodnight, Fionna."

Fionna felt all the blood rush to her cheeks. If Fionna's heart wasn't about to leap out of her chest before, it definitely was now. She giggled like a little girl and leaped down the steps of the Candy Castle, barely able to contain herself. She turned back and waved, "Goodnight, PG!"

He waved to her with a smile that set her heart aflutter.

She felt so blissful, she didn't even rush home. She meandered through the Kingdom streets, in high spirits. She said 'Hi!' to her friends and waved as she passed the many citizens of the kingdom. She walked past various food stands and trinket shops. But for some reason she strolled right into the Library. Maybe Turtle Prince and LSP would be there. Maybe they had a good book for her. Wait… A book?

She found herself grinning, thinking only of Gumball. She looked at her hand and felt it tingling in the spot where Gumball kissed it. She knew PG was the only reason she had an impulse to come to this place where knowledge was held. That boy loves books.

She laughed to herself and went to find Turtle Prince.

* * *

Marshall was having a very boring week. He resented it.

He had his electric guitar. That was at least something.

But he always grew tired of sitting in his house, playing random tunes on his six-string all day. And for some reason, his melodious creativity was lacking. He was having a hard time making his own music like he used to. He used to just be able to pick up his guitar and play a beautiful melody. Lately, he felt like his muse was gone. His inspiration; nowhere to be seen. He just couldn't come up with the tune, the lyrics, the rhythm, anything! Like someone had squeezed all his musical ideas out of him, leaving him dry and dull.

Out of boredom, he decided to go out and about the kingdom. When the sun set and darkness fell upon the Land of Aaa, Marshall Lee headed out of his mind-numbing home, and found himself floating to the Candy Kingdom. Even though he'd already explored most of the city, he still had fun visiting the kingdom.

Some of the Candy People were frightened by him; as he floated by the cowered in fear. He would simply shrug and drift away until they realized he meant no harm. But most took no notice of him.

Today he went to a new street he had not yet seen. He explored a quaint little shop he had found on the remote boulevard. It happened to sell instruments, which immediately caught Marshall's attention.

He floated into the store, hoping to find some musical inspiration. The little Gum-drop sitting at the counter raised his eyebrows.

Marshall held up a hand. "Hey," He said lamely.

"Hello," The candy Gum-drop said cautiously. "If you have any questions feel free to holler."

"Thanks," Marshall said, as he cast his eyes at the shelves. He drifted through the music store, finding himself thoroughly disappointed.

The shelves were full of wimpy instruments like flutes and maracas. There were trumpets and Violins, but no Guitars. Marshall poked his head out from behind a shelf and addressed the clerk.

"Hey, um, do you, like, have any guitars?"

"Guitars?"

"Yeah, like, an electric or a bass or anything?"

The little gum-drop man chuckled. "Sorry, buddy. Do we Candy People look like were big enough to hold a bass guitar?"

Marshall contemplated this while looking at the clerk's rather small stature. "Yeah, your right. Do you have any songbooks at least?" He brightened, thinking maybe he could find something new to play, rather than his same old songs. And maybe even playing some sheet music could help his songwriting talent come back to him.

"Hm… Songbooks." The clerk paused. "I think were out of sheet music at the moment. You could check the library, though. They're bound to have something you're looking for."

Marshall smiled half-heartedly at the clerk. "Thanks, maybe I'll try that."

He floated out of the store and found himself back on the street, out in the cool night. He drifted through the kingdom, clearly in no rush, until he found the massive building with a sign: LIBRARY.

He'd never been in the Library before, but he decided to try it just for kicks.

He pushed open the door and the overhead bell startled him with a little _Jingle!_ Inside he found it peacefully quiet. He enjoyed the serenity of the Candy People in the Library. He gazed at the massive shelves of books. They seemed to be endless, stretching as far as Marshall could see.

"Ah-hem!" Someone cleared their throat beside him. He glanced over to see a rather conventional Turtle sitting at a dark-wooden desk with a crown atop his head.

The strange reptile smiled warmly. "Hello. Welcome to the Library! I'm Turtle Prince. Is there anything in particular you're looking for?"

"I was wondering if you guys had any songbooks. Or sheet music maybe?"

"Oh, of course! The music section is that way, to the right, 3rd shelf." He pointed.

"Oh. Um, thank you."

"No problem." The prince smiled as Marshall floated in the direction he had pointed to.

He browsed the shelves, occasionally taking out an old dusty songbook, only to discover the songs to be incredibly tedious and uninteresting. He could barely find any songs for guitars in the first place! The teen Vampire King grew tired of looking at dull books, and started to notice the girls.

Surprisingly, there were a lot of good looking princesses in the Library. Marshall Lee would never expect a Library to be a place where a lot of hot chicks hung out, but lo and behold, he was wrong. There were princesses all around, looking at books, reading, carrying loads of them to the checkout counter. Apparently chicks like books, he noted.

After studying his surroundings more closely, he noticed not very many of them were actually human, like he was. Although they looked like it, few of them were actually even close to being human. Most were some sort of candy or other whimsical creature. Then he had to remind himself he wasn't human either, he was a vampire.

I'm about as human as I'll ever be, Marshall thought bleakly.

Marshall flipped his hair and put on his best stunning grin. He was about to pick one of the peculiar ladies to approach, just when the door opened with a loud jingle from the bell.

A girl walked inside, radiating happiness. She grinned and giggled slightly to herself. Marshall was instantly curious as to what she was so happy about, even though it wasn't his business. He was shocked at how beautiful she looked when she smiled, which was a surprising thought to Marshall's usually negative brain. He peered at her from behind a shelf, wondering if she was a human. She wasn't wearing a crown, but she looked like a princess.

She was a quaint, conservative girl, wearing a blue skirt and a t-shirt. She had pretty blonde hair that spilled out of her bunny-eared hat. But, despite her plain clothes, she looked very pretty and her joyful disposition was infectious.

She looked like easy prey for a seasoned flirt like Marshall. He knew she would be no match for his smoldering smile and audacity. So, naturally, he tried to make a move.

He hung around for a while and watched as she browsed. It surprised him greatly that she headed for an aisle that read _ADVENTURE/HORROR/MYSTERY_.

The Vampire King was expecting the girl to go to the _ROMANCE_ or _TEEN MAGAZINE_ section. He thought that was unusual, but he pressed on anyway.

He pretended he was looking at book titles, while walking inconspicuously towards her. As she reached for a book, he cut in and made a grab for the same one.

She looked up at him, wide-eyed and surprised.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean—" Marshall stuttered, trying to look innocent.

She handed the book to him, blushing a bit. "Oh, no. I'm sorry, I-"

"No, it was my fault!"

"It's fine, here you can have it!"

Once he had seen her blush, Marshall knew he had her; hook, line, and sinker. Marshall didn't take the book, but he gave her a devilish grin. "You know, it's pretty intense," he mused, "sort of scary, you wouldn't really like it."

She furrowed her eyebrows, turning the book over in her hands. She thought for a moment, and then looked up at him with mischievous eyes.

"How would you know what books I like?"

"Well…" He chuckled. "I _know_ princesses… And you look like the kind of princess that likes the cute, fluffy things in life." He flicked a finger at one of her bunny ears, flashing her a dazzling smile.

Her face turned red, but she managed to keep a calm, mature face. "Uh huh..." She looked him up and down. "Hmm, I see where this is going. First of all, I'm not a princess. And second of all, you're just looking for a chick to ask out or something, right? You're looking for a beautiful, adorable, sweet little princess to be your temporary lady friend," She gestured to the abundance of princesses in the library. "Am I getting warm?"

Marshall just stared. His eyes didn't turn red; he didn't turn into a shadowy monster or a big, daunting bat; none of the things he usually does when someone ticks him off. He just stared, unspeaking and shocked, listening to this odd girl tell him off like an angry babysitter.

"Well, listen up, dude," She said, poking him the arm. "If you knew anything about me or even anything about chicks, you would know that I am perfectly capable of picking my own books." She pushed him aside with the book and walked towards the checkout counter, leaving Marshall Lee very taken aback.

As he watched the only girl that had ever gotten away from him walk confidently out of the store, he knew his boring week had just become a whole lot more exciting.


	2. Chapter 2

"…And he thought I was a _Princess!"_

Fionna was still steaming over her strange encounter with that boy. As soon as she arrived at the tree house, she sat down with a slice of Cake's delicious pie, and told her all about it. Cake was happy to listen, and Fionna was grateful Cake was good at this _boy stuff._ As Fionna's voice rose, Cake could tell she was clearly flustered about her story.

"Hmmm…" Cake nodded in thought, stuffing some more pie in her mouth.

Fionna gestured to herself. "I mean, who thinks _I_ am a princess?! WHO?!"

"I don't know, sweetie. That is just trippy…"

"I don't even know who he was! I've never seen him before."

"Oh honey! I bet your ol' girl Cake knows him! What did he look like?"

Fionna wracked her brain. "He definitely wasn't human. He didn't really look like a prince either… He didn't look like a candy person, not one that I've ever seen." She put a finger to her mouth thoughtfully. "He was floating a bit, but he didn't have wings. His hair was black… It was really nice too…" Fionna lost her train of thought.

"OH! I KNOW WHO IT IS!" Cake smashed her pie plate down on the table, snapping Fionna out of her daydream of fluffy black hair.

"Wha-Who!?"

"Marshall!"

"Who?"

"Marshall Lee! He's a vampire!" Cake said as if she had just won the lottery.

Fionna pondered this. "A vampire?"

"Yeah…" Cake sat down, calming a bit. "He isn't the best of characters to hang around with, so I've heard. I can't really say anything bad about him; I've only run into him a few times around town. But he seems to me like a rough, rowdy sort of guy."

"Hm…" Fionna seemed lost in thought.

"Hey! Forgot to tell you—" Cake stretched her arm over to the counter and grabbed a folded piece of paper. She thrust it towards Fionna. "Mo-Chro stopped by earlier and gave me this. You know who it's from." Cake winked.

"Ha ha, you're so funny." Fionna rolled her eyes at Cake. She opened the note and read:

_My Dearest, Fionna!_

_Sorry for a last minute favor, but I was wondering if you and Cake could stop by the Candy Kid Daycare tomorrow and check on all the little ones. I hate making you do such mundane jobs; I know you are capable of such amazing things, but I was supposed to be visiting the daycare all day. Then, unfortunately, we had to schedule a last minute meeting with the Candy Council, because of an incident. Thank Glob I have you Fionna!_

_Love,_

_~ Prince Gumball_

Fionna's eyes lingered on the last three words, gazing at Gumball's horribly romantic handwriting as it scrolled and looped across the page.

"Okay," She said as soon as she was back from having her head in the clouds. "So you're good with this?"

"Yep, got my diaper changing supplies all packed!" Cake held up a large bag of baby powder, doctor's face masks, disinfecting wipes, latex gloves and hand sanitizer.

"Cake… Don't you think you packed a little too much?"

"Nonsense, honey! You never know what's going to happen when you're dealing with kiddy doo-doo. Anyways," She smiled, handing her another slice of pie, "You still have to tell me ALL about your date with _Prince Gumball!"_ She wiggled her eyebrows.

"Oh!" Fionna blushed, giggling in remembrance. She put all thoughts of the mysterious vampire out of her head before gushing to her cat about her somewhat-magical date with the prince.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey PG," The Vampire King said, floating through a window.

"Why hello, Marshall. What brings you to my castle, uninvited?"

"Why does it have to be something specific? Why can't I just float in, and play some smooth jams for my gummy buddy?" He brought his guitar around to the front of his body, and settled on a windowsill.

"I suppose there is no harm," The prince had his back turned from Marshall, engrossed in some sort of experiment on the table that Marshall didn't care about. All he could tell is that it consisted of marshmallows, watermelons and a lizard.

Marshall grinned, letting the breeze rustle his hair as he sat in a high window of the Candy Castle. He breathed deep, gazing at the landscape below him before beginning to strum a tune.

"_Good little girl,_

_Always picking a fight with me._

_Good little girl,_

_With a hat like a bunny—"_

Marshall frowned at his lyrics, deciding that didn't sound quite right.

Gumball whipped around. "Who are you talking about?"

"What? I was just singing—it was— I don't know—"

"Marshall." Gumball tried his best to remain calm. "Who. Are. You. Talking about?!"

Marshall caved. "This girl…"

"What girl?"

"I don't know her name." It suddenly dawned on Marshall he didn't even know the girl's name.

"Did this girl have blonde hair?"

"Yeah…"

"And a blue outfit?"

"…Yeah…" Marshall eyed Gumball's ability to know who he was talking about by a simple four line rhyme.

Gumball took a deep breath. "First of all; her name is Fionna. She slays great beasts with her faithful cat, Cake—"

"Fionna?! That's a rockin' name," Marshall began to strum up a song again before Prince Gumball cut him off.

"AND, second of all; she is my adventurer. My page, my lab assistant, my courier, my rescuer! In fact, she's going to help me with the daycare kids tomorrow when I leave to go to—"

"Man, she does a lot of junk for you, huh?"

"—Marshall! Do not interrupt!"

Marshall bowed his head in mock shame.

"I know this sounds a bit rude or harsh, but I don't want you to be hanging around her."

"Why?!"

"Because, she is very…" He searched for a word, _"Good._ And I don't want you messing up her brain with all your…your…" He searched for another word, _"Bad."_

"Aw, come on, PG!" Marshall rose from the windowsill and swirled around Prince Gumball. "I ain't that bad!"

Gumball turned in circles, trying to focus on the vampire who was floating around him, making him dizzy. He finally stood still and shook his head. "Yes! Yes you _are!"_

Marshall froze in the air, finally allowing Gumball's head to stop spinning.

"I mean, not completely bad," He began to back-pedal, seeing Marshall's offended expression. "You're just a bit… misunderstood. I only don't want you around her because she might be influenced by your rebellious and disruptive ways."

"Disruptive? Is that what I'm doing now?" Marshall raised an eyebrow, strumming quiet chords on his guitar.

"Yes! I mean— no! That's not the point! Ugh," The prince brought his hands to his head, closing his eyes in frustration. He took a few deep breaths and started again. "The point is; I don't want you hanging out with Fionna."

Marshall's face turned to one of awe as the gears turned in his head. His expression turned from shocked to amused to knowing in a matter of heartbeats. A mischievous grin spread across his face.

"Whoa, PG… Do you have a crush on Fionna?"

"What?! No! Why would I? I don't know anything of this 'Crush' you speak of!" His face turned red, easily noticeable on his light pink cheeks. He turned away, and started to work on his experiment again. But Marshall persisted.

He quickly flew around to the Prince and stuck his face right in front of him, grinning like a madman. "You DO don't you?! You like Bunny-girl!"

"No! I don't! Fionna and I are merely friends; fellow defenders of the great Candy Kingdom."

"You do! You're just too stuck up to admit it!" Marshall stuck his pointy tongue out at him.

"No! I am not too 'stuck up' to admit to anything! I am merely mature with my feelings." Gumball crossed his arms defiantly, sticking his nose up at his floating vampire friend.

Marshall floated back a bit, giving Gumball some space. The vampire looked away nonchalantly and began picking his nails.

"So you wouldn't mind if I went after her then?"

Gumball's face turned so red, Marshall thought he was going to catch fire. Despite his many attempts so calm down, he exploded right before Marshall Lee.

"ARGH! You are such a BUTT!" He stomped over to Marshall, and stuck a finger right up to his face. "Marshall, you have no right to have any interactions with Fionna. She is a great, wonderful, helpful person, and I know that if you get in the picture you will glob everything up!"

Marshall flung his guitar around behind him and got right in Gumball's space again, his dark eyes blazing. "What the heck?! That isn't even fair! You won't tell her you like her, but I can't hang out with her? What kind junk is that?!" He threw his arms up in the air in defiance.

Gumball also flung his arms in the air, but out of frustration. "I'm just trying to watch out for her!"

"Why?! Because you don't think she can watch out for herself?"

Gumball opened his mouth to say something, and then shut it again. His arms dropped to his sides. What Marshall said made him stop and think for a moment. Marshall was infinitely pleased he caused his brainy friend to be tongue-tied. Gumball closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Okay Marshall," He said as calmly as possible. "Let's make a deal. You can become… _acquaintances_ with Fionna, as long as there is no…" He paused, lost for words yet again, "…intimacy."

"What the junk, PG? You can't even admit YOUR feelings for this girl, and you're telling ME I can't even flirt with her?!"

"I didn't mean—"

"PG, let's make a deal a different way. Let's make this a friendly race. I'll bet you that I can get this girl to fall in love with me before you can even admit your petty little prince feelings for her." Marshall smirked.

"You've only just met her!" Gumball's eyes practically popped out of his head.

"Exactly."

Gumball frowned, knowing he was cornered. He shook it off. This kind of bickering was normal for him and Marshall; he just had to wriggle his way out. "No, Marshall! I'm not doing this! For one, I don't want to exploit Fionna just because of our foolish competitiveness. And for another, I don't have _feelings_ for her! You just accused me of that!"

"Whatever… Suit yourself." Marshall floated nonchalantly in lazy circles around the room, while Gumball's face turned an unsightly shade of reddish-purple.

After a few minutes, he couldn't take it anymore. "MARSHALL! I do NOT have feelings for Fionna. That's final!"

"Okay. It's all good. I was just trying to help."

"I don't need your help with Fionna!" He screeched.

Marshall cast his eyes down at his guitar. "Fine… I'm not going to force you to do anything you clearly aren't capable of doing. Heck, maybe Fionna doesn't even like you back, dumbo. Did you ever think of that?" He shrugged, strumming a gloomy chord on his guitar. "I guess you'll never know."

The prince stared, emotionless.

Marshall rose from the window again. "Anyways, I think I'm gonna head out, PG."

He turned back to the prince once more before leaving. The dark night shadowed his eyes, making him seem very harsh and ominous. "One more thing: Don't tell Fionna we're buds, okay? I'm not an expert, but I think that'll ruin our little game."

He waved for a farewell, regardless of the unmoving, unspeaking prince.

"See ya."

With that sudden goodbye, not caring that Gumball had never agreed to any game, he was gone. He vanished into the night, leaving a chilly silence in his wake.

The prince collapsed into a nearby chair, and put his head in his hands. For the rest of the night, he couldn't think of anything but Fionna. It was so obvious now, even a foolish delinquent like Marshall could see, and that worried Gumball. He had to decide how he thought of her now, before it ruined them both.


	4. Chapter 4

"Isn't this great?" Cake grumbled, as Fionna brought her another stinky gumdrop child. She grabbed the baby powder to change yet another poopy diaper.

"Oh, come on, I like it here!" Fionna said, as she coddled a little lollipop girl. The toddler giggled and squealed as Fionna tickled her.

"Oh please! That's only because they all adore you! I'm just the one that changes the stinky diapers!"

"True," Fionna admitted. She laughed as a group of baby cookies sang a song, dancing in a circle around her. "But I'm sure they'd like you too if you took a break from cleaning all the poo-poo."

"Alright, alright! It's not my fault I don't want it to stink like warm cheese up in here," Cake muttered as she washed her hands in the sink.

Just then, the sky outside turned dark as the clouds moved in. There was a rumbling outside and it began to rain. Some of the little ones started to worry, and a few looked close to tears. The rain was loud; it pattered against the roof and the windows.

"Don't worry!" Fionna said. "It's just a little rain! It'll be gone soon."

But the kids didn't exactly believe her. A teeny strawberry that was sitting by the window began to cry. Fionna ran over to her. "Oh no! Don't cry!"

"Time to panic!" Cake said as some of the other kids began to whimper. She rushed to the counter and grabbed the plate of raspberry cupcakes she made last night. She had told Fionna she was saving them for an emergency... or possibly if she got hungry on the job.

She began to walk around and pass them to the fussy children. They gratefully took them and started to smear their faces with the sugary pink frosting. "We're going to need a lot of wipes," Cake said as she handed one to a shortcake baby who smashed it on his nose.

Fionna tried to seem positive. "Yeah, but we'll be fine, with our cupcakes and our amazing childcare skills. Soon the rain will pass and—"

_Rumble…kshhh…_

Lightning flashed and the lights flickered out. Thunder suddenly boomed in the distance and the rain started to pour harder. The children began to wail. Cake yelped as her tail started to bristle, as it does when there's danger.

"What—What does that mean?!" Fionna exclaimed over the din, pointing at Cake's tail in the low light. Her and Cake both knew they were in a daycare, and if there was danger, they were going to have a serious problem.

"Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!" Cake said, running around, hushing the children. "I don't know, but I can sure feel it!"

"Well we can't worry about it now! We have to help these kids!" Fionna said as she brainstormed. "We need something to calm them down; distract them! Like a story, or a song, or—"

"—Did someone say a song?" said a sly voice.

Fionna and Cake whirled around, just as a thin, lean figure floated calmly out of the shadows, and into the light of a window. The vampire boy seemed unbothered by the thunder and the crying children.

"You again?!" Fionna glowered at him, incredulous.

Marshall grinned. "Don't say it like a bad thing, girl!"

He pointed to Cake and her tail which was settling a bit, now that she knew it was only Marshall. "Cake, right?"

Cake nodded. "That's me, honey. Nice to meet you, mister Marshall," She said absently, going off to attend to a group of gumdrop kids who were balling hysterically.

The floating boy nodded, laughing slightly as he spoke. "Mister Marshall... I like that."

He smiled at Fionna. "I don't think I properly introduced myself," He said, sticking a hand out to her. "My name is Marshall Lee, musician extraordinaire."

She turned her nose up, unwilling to shake it. Marshall brushed the hand over his hair awkwardly. "Okay, no handshake…"

"What do you want?!"

"Well, I think I could be of some help." He winked at her, bringing his guitar out from behind his back. He looked down at his ax-shaped instrument and began strumming the strings until he picked up a cheerful melody. And to Fionna's surprise, he began to sing.

_Don't cry little babies,_

_Everything is gonna be oka-ay._

_Don't cry little babies,_

_Soon the rain will go awa-ay._

_Don't worry little children,_

_Eat what the kitty ba-aked._

_Don't worry little children,_

_You're safe with Fionna and Ca-ake._

His rich, round tone resonated through the room. The children were so silent; you could hear a pin drop. They all looked to Marshall in bewilderment, not sure what to think of this frightening, yet lulling creature.

Fionna obviously didn't know what to think of him either. She stared in shock at the mysterious vampire, after listening to his surprisingly sweet and pleasant-sounding voice. He finally raised his head up from his guitar and smirked at Fionna, revealing his long shiny canines. She looked back at him with her mouth hung agape, unspeaking and frozen.

Marshall looked around at the children, clearly satisfied. "So, I suppose I deserve an apology." He looked at Fionna pointedly. She was still a bit shocked. She shook her head, trying to clear it.

"Fine, fine. Whatever."

"Say it."

"I'm sorry. Now don't bother me."

"Anything else you want to say?"

"No." She tried turning away from him, but he followed, floating in front of her.

"You sure?"

"THANK YOU! Now leave us alone!"

Marshall contemplated this. "Well… Now that you mention it… I think I want to stay a while."

He floated off. Fionna watched him cautiously; unsure of what sort of unpredictable mayhem he would cause next.

He went up to a cotton candy girl, who was playing with a doll house. He got right up in her face, and suddenly his eyes turned black and shadowy, with red pupils at the center. Fionna almost screamed herself. The sight itself was simply horrifying. "RAWWWR!" He roared. The girl ran away, screaming and crying as Marshall continued around the daycare.

Fionna dashed after him and grabbed his arm. "What are you DOING?!"

"I'm playin' with the kids!" He said innocently.

She looked up at him incredulously. "Leave! Now!"

"Hm… Let me think about that…" He put a finger to his chin. "NO!"

He morphed into a bat before Fionna's eyes, and began creeping around the daycare, scaring child after child. He landed right on a little kid's cupcake and plucked the cherry right off, causing the kid to wail. He jumped off the defiled dessert and morphed back into his original form. He floated around to Fionna, and dangled the cherry above her head. "How do you like it when I do that to your little kiddos?"

He bit into the cherry and all the red seeped out of it, turning it grey and dull. Fionna's eyes just about popped out of her head. "What the heck are you doing now!?"

"I eat shades of red, little Fionna." He laughed. He threw the gross, discolored cherry at a nearby little girl who squealed and screamed, smacking the cherry away. He laughed, swirling around the daycare like a tornado of wickedness and fluffy hair.

"Stop it!" Fionna said. Marshall was shocking her in a different way every second. This was the worst time she had ever had at any one of Gumball's jobs. She was so frustrated her throat tightened and she wanted to start crying herself. She looked to Cake for help, but she was busy calming the children.

"Um… No. Don't think I will." He morphed back into a bat again and tried to fly away. But Fionna was quicker than him. Her aggravation and anger had pumped her full of adrenaline. People can mess with her, but they can't mess with little kids on her watch. She grabbed the little bat in her fist and threw him against the wall. _BAM!_ The force caused him to instantly morph back to regular form, and he sank down the wall like a sack of potatoes.

"Ugh…" He rubbed his head.

"That's enough! This job was hard enough without you here! Now get OUT!" Fionna screamed.

He looked down in shame. "Fine, I'll leave… But on one condition."

Fionna crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Go with me tomorrow to the night club."

Fionna gawked. "What?!" Marshall could tell she wasn't expecting that bomb. It made him grin triumphantly.

"You know," Marshall got up, and resumed floating around Fionna's head, "Ghost Prince is having a party. There's a night club that just opened underground. They're calling it 'The Cave.' It's incredible," Marshall continued. "Ghost Prince rounded up a bunch of Night creatures, Ghosts, Zombies, and like, any other peeps that want to come. It'll be crazy awesome."

Her voice had risen to an annoyed, slightly shocked pitch. "No! I'm not going to a party with you! You just turned the daycare into a disaster! You think you can come in here and be a butt head and then ask me out?! Not a chance! Now leave! I'm trying to work!" She turned away from him, and started to clean some cupcake off the floor.

Marshall didn't leave. After Fionna had turned her back, he turned invisible. He knew he had to do something crazy, because she didn't know he had the ability to become invisible yet. The thought almost made him cackle with glee. He was so excited; he grabbed the nearest thing, which happened to be a sugary, frosted cupcake, just sitting on the daycare's counter.

He picked it up slowly, and floated towards Fionna. He put his face right behind her bunny-eared head and whispered "Boo."

Fionna whipped around, screaming. As soon as she did, he smashed the cupcake right in her face, smearing the pink frosting all over her.

"Wah!" She screamed.

"Haha!" Marshall busted up laughing, turning visible again. "You should have seen your face!" He clutched his stomach hysterically, unable to contain his laughter.

"Argh!" Fionna stood up and snatched a rag from the counter. She wiped the frosting off her face, flustered and weary. "Fine! Just fine! If I say yes to your party will you leave?" She huffed. She put a hand on her hip, furrowing her eyebrows angrily.

Marshall nodded.

"Fine, I'll go."

"See you at 8:30. Meet me outside the castle." Marshall winked. In a flash, he was out the window and vanished into the dark night, finally leaving Fionna and Cake in peace.

Fionna looked to Cake to see what she was going to say. Cake just wiggled her eyebrows at her in an encouraging manner.

Fionna put her hands to her face before Cake could see her blush. "Ugh!"

That boy was much more troublesome than Cake made him seem.


	5. Chapter 5

Fionna sighed with relief when she saw Gumball approaching her. She couldn't have been happier to see him. On second thought, when was she not happy to see him?

She was standing at the start of the Castle Gardens, with the long expanse of shrubbery and flowering plants stretching behind her. After the horribly stormy day they'd had yesterday, the sky above was blue and clear, with the sun warming her face. What a great outcome from the previous day's disaster!

Fionna was fiddling her hands as she leaned against a tall hedge. She felt very naked without Cake by her side. She was regretting telling her it was fine to leave her alone. But it wasn't like this was the first time Gumball and Fionna had been alone, so why worry? As Fionna thought about the two of them, she figured they would never develop a proper relationship if they didn't get any quality time with each other, away from their corresponding companions.

Which brought up a whole other topic on Fionna's mind. Cake had been trying to 'coach' Fionna about relationships, being the caring and clever adopted sister she was. She said that Fionna had to be more assertive, especially since she was going after an older man. After Fionna rolled her eyes and groaned, "He's not that much older, Cake!" Cake had insisted that he was old enough to look down upon Fionna, and not see her as a potential lady friend. This got the young girl listening as Cake described the many methods and techniques to go about wooing one's crush.

Fionna was skeptical of Cakes insight at times, when it seemed like Cake was just spouting random, unhelpful advice. But she listened anyways, never thinking she would actually use any of Cake's strange recommendations. However, as she saw the Prince walking towards her, as wonderful and radiant as ever, she decided it might be a good idea to use some of that advice. Right now. Probably speed things along a bit, she thought as she looked at Gumball with stars in her eyes.

He was pink and bright in the sun, and her heart started to race again despite all her efforts to make it calm. Her beautiful, shiny, Prince of the Candy Kingdom. She felt so much smaller and insignificant in his presence, so she took heed to her sister's idea of being 'confident' and 'self-assured.'

But her plans crumbled as he approached. She noticed he looked more troubled, rather than regal. That alarmed her. Her stomach fell to her toes when she thought this might be more serious than a date, if even that.

She felt a bit better when he smiled. "Hello Fionna! I called you here to give you a proper apology concerning yesterday's unfortunate events." He glanced behind his shoulder nervously. The worry lines on his forehead alerted Fionna; something was up.

"Are you okay, PG?"

"Oh, yes! Quite fine! Perhaps never better!" He flipped his head around to look behind his other shoulder.

"Um…" She raised an eyebrow at him.

"So!" He turned back to her, "About that apology! I would prefer us to converse in privacy." He smiled at her, whipping out a hot pink rose from behind his back and handing it to her with dignity. Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest in one beat. Maybe this was a date after all. His kindness made her heart hurt, and pushed her head into the clouds.

"Oh!" She breathed, the fact that it came from her prince made the small gift more beautiful in her eyes than in reality. "Thank you, PG."

"Come," He said as she took the flower. He took her other hand in his, pulling her into the garden.

Fionna trailed behind him, trying her best not to smile so overbearingly.

They walked, through the dazzling, colorful garden that never ceased to impress Fionna. The fruit on the bushes were the color of precious gems, and the animals were so cheery, it made her think of a storybook. She grinned happily as she looked at the garden's scenery, but her smile faltered when she glanced up at Gumball. He had an anxious look on his face and kept glancing around.

She tried her best not to notice, but he wasn't exactly very inconspicuous about whatever he was so worked up over.

They reached a simple fountain in the center of the maze of hedges. It was tall and beautiful, but also quaint, with cool, crystalline water flowing from its top. It had a classic looking bench sitting next to it, old wood painted white, with vibrant flowers surrounding.

"After you, milady," Gumball gestured to the bench.

Fionna giggled as she and Gumball came to rest on the bench.

"Now with my request for forgiveness." He smiled. "I really should tell you, we've been having a bit of a vampire problem. They just keep popping up unwanted, wherever they feel like it." He looked around himself again, seeming to be flustered. "I hope that you'll understand. I am truly sorry. If it was in my power, no vampire would ever bother you again." He leaned closer to Fionna, grinning. "But I'll do everything I can to keep you out of their destructive paths."

Fionna blushed, never recalling a time Gumball had been so close to her. She could smell his fragrant scent, the sweet scent that made her want to get closer. He smelled nostalgic somehow, like she was walking into a candy store as a child. She remembered the wonderful smells filling her nose while she closed her eyes and breathed deep. She closed her eyes now and imagined the same scene, except this time it was a million times better, because Gumball was with her. Gumball was right in front of her! In some miraculous turn of events, her dreams were coming true. Whether it be fate, or the fact that he felt bad about that annoying vampire kid, it didn't matter. Gumball was becoming closer to her. Both literally and figuratively, she thought smugly.

She knew she had to come back to reality eventually, so she tried her best.

She opened her eyes slowly to see Gumball's right in front of hers, smiling with those intelligent eyes. "I-I didn't know you had a problem…" She said, both shakily and dreamily.

"Oh yes," he breathed, "a terrible problem we have. _Nobody_ likes vampires around." He smirked. Fionna almost giggled. How often was it that she got to see Gumball's smirk with such a fabulous view?

Suddenly, she had visions of Cake's coaching again. She pictured Cake standing on the kitchen table, bellowing like a preacher leading an entire church in prayer.

"_You gotta be BOLD, honey! You have to be BRAVE! You have to put. Your. Self. OUT THERE!" She drove the words right into Fionna's head. "A man likes it when his woman is assertive! You have to show him what you want, girl! You are Fionna the Adventurer! Show no fear!" Cake shouted to the ceiling._

"_No fear!" Fionna echoed, pondering her sister's advice._

Well, Cake didn't spend all that time preaching for nothing. Better use it when I have the chance, Fionna thought.

She ran through the facts in her head.

Gumball gave her a rose. He walked her through the garden. He sat down with her by the fountain. He's leaning quite close to her, in a very non-friend-ish way... There's ino way/i this isn't a date, Fionna thought. That's it. Time to make a move.

"Well you know what we do like around?" Fionna asked, in her best attempt at a sultry voice.

"What's that?" Gumball said, eyebrows raised.

Fionna smirked. "Gumwads."

She pushed forwards the few centimeters separating them, before she could talk herself out of it, and kissed him. She kissed the prince.

She pressed her lips to his, and the first thing that came to mind was the amazing taste of them. Incredibly sweet and—

"Wah!" Gumball flung himself backwards, alarmed.

"What?" Fionna asked, still in the same position of leaning forward to kiss PG. Except PG was no longer there.

He gasped. "Wha—What—What are you doing?!"

"I was…" She paused, feeling very awkward and uncomfortable. "I was kissing you."

Gumball's face flushed a very deep red, and his face bunched in confusion. "I—I just…" He stammered. "I just don't think that is a very good idea…"

"Oh." Fionna leaned back, feeling like she had just been punched in the stomach. By a metal chair. Several times.

The feeling of rejection settled deep in her, like a hard, cold stone. Tears threatened at her eyes but she pushed them away, knowing she had to keep some sort of dignity. Gumball didn't want her. She had been discarded. Unwanted. Rejected. She couldn't get past that word. Rejected.

She didn't even know what to say.

She stood from the bench and got up to walk away. "Uh, sorry."

She turned slowly, walking back towards the entrance of the garden, each footstep feeling like a stack of bricks weighed it down. Thoughts scrolled through her mind at warp speed, trying to find as many ways she could have improved that moment, ways she could have fixed it. But the more she thought, the more she had to realize you couldn't go back in time. There are no re-dos in life. That thought alone made a stormy cloud settle over her mind.

She heard Gumball scramble, standing up behind her.

"Fionna!" He cried.

She turned back slowly, ensuring she kept a straight face.

"Fionna, I—"

His mouth was open but the only thing that came out was silence. An unsure, confused, shocked, and baffled silence. A few heartbeats passed before Fionna turned away in disgust, not caring if it was the disgust of her own actions, or the repulsion of Gumball's reaction.

She walked away, faster now. As soon as she was outside the gates of the Candy Castle, she broke into a stumbling run. Tears broke the surface and clouded her eyes. She wiped at them hopelessly, trying to clear her vision. She wanted nothing more than to crawl into her bed and cry into Cake's fur.

Fleeing from her heartbreak, something broke inside Fionna. Something, right then, changed.

The entire way she thought about Gumball was now different. She didn't put him on a high and mighty pedestal in her heart anymore. She wasn't' going to surround his very name with loving and adoring thoughts anymore. She wasn't going to use her tireless efforts to please him anymore, serve every whim, come whenever called.

Suddenly, all those times when Cake had rambled on about 'being used' and 'abusing power over someone' made so much sense. It was as if all the gears had clicked into place, causing Fionna's mind to whir. Her new revelation shoved Gumball out of his place in her heart, causing pain and bitterness to seep in and fill it.

Fionna looked with hatred at the wilting rose in her hand. She threw the flower down, leaving it in the grass behind her. As she thrust it away, a thorn caught her hand, leaving a bleeding scratch. She cursed, more tears flooding her eyes, as she cried out. The thorn in her rose broke her heart even further. Moments ago that rose had been like a precious gem, and now, it was trash in her eyes.

Fionna had been humbled, she knew that, but she had also been broken.


	6. Chapter 6

Fionna grumbled to herself as she walked along the dark streets of the Candy Kingdom.

"Can't believe Cake made me wear this _stupid_ dress… I hate dresses… _Stupid_ Cake… Why does she have to dress me like this for a _stupid_ party? ...I don't even want to go to some dumb party… _Stupid_ Gumball, breaking my _stupid_ heart. Why does he have to be so _stupid?_ Now he put me in a _stupid_ mood, and everything is _stupid_… Why am I even going to a dumb night club? What kind of adventuress goes to a night club?"

She hadn't realized she'd been clenching her fists until she muted her babble. She tried to relax, and let out a long sigh. It's just a dress, Fionna, she thought. Just a dress.

Fionna had enough crying and despairing earlier. She'd lain in the tree house for hours, clutching random pillows, Beemo, Cake, and anything else that was remotely squishy and huggable. She'd cried her eyes out, wailing until her throat hurt. She'd scream about how she would never love again, she would never eat again, go outside, or fight another monster. She screamed into the ceiling, "The man I love rejected me! My life is over!"

Cake, who was feeling very kind and motherly at the time, fought back the urge to roll her eyes at Fionna's teenage reaction. She was a wise enough cat to know that life was not going to be over, and she was indeed going to live. But she didn't say that. She just cuddled with her blonde haired mess of tears, wrapping her in the soft fluffy blanket that was her outstretched tail.

Eventually, after much crying and consoling, Cake left the sniveling Fionna with Beemo, and slipped into the kitchen. She returned moments later holding a big salad bowl filled with ice cream, and three spoons. She smiled widely, sitting by Fionna, handing them each a spoon.

So for the rest of the day, the three shoveled ice cream into their mouths, causing Fionna to forget what tears tasted like. Although she did continue to sniff and whimper, she got better slowly.

The sun began to set and they were all sitting cozy together by the fireplace, warm and content, with their discarded bowl and spoons next to them. When Cake looked out the window and saw the darkening sky, her eyes about popped out of her head.

"_Sweet babies!"_ she cried, jumping up. "You have a date, sister!"

And then that was when all this happened, Fionna thought, looking down at her outfit with remorse. She walked through the dark streets, feeling very exposed without her usual backpack and sword.

I'm sure Cake and Beemo had a fabulous time 'beautifying' me, Fionna thought unhappily. The pair had tried their best to cover up Fionna's puffy eyes, and the dark circles that surrounded, but Fionna wasn't sure if it was possible to escape the effects of all that pathetic crying.

Her dress was black this time; opposite the last time she wore a dress, where it was white. It still had the same 'Cake Flair' with the gold ribbons, but it was shorter and less formal.

Fionna fumed. If Cake made this dress black because I'm going to meet a vampire she is _so_ going to get it.

She finally reached the spot where Marshall had said to meet at. Just outside the wall of the Candy Castle, all the way to the back end of the building. She looked around, but didn't see anything. No vampire, no door, no undead partying creatures. Nothing.

She waited, the chilly night wind causing her to shiver. She was one heartbeat away from leaving when out of nowhere came a "Boo."

Fionna screeched, almost leaping out of her dress. Which, while on the subject, was too itchy for her liking.

"Jeez! Hello to you too!" She thought of how good it would feel to punch him in the face.

"Hahaha!" He clutched the side of his face, almost crying tears of laughter. He was dressed differently from his normal attire, this time with a black causal button-up shirt instead of plaid, with a red tie, and he completed the look with his ax guitar. That's probably black tie formal for this moron, Fionna thought.

His smiling laugh revealed his large canines, sparkling in the moonlight from above. "Man, that never gets old."

Fionna stood defiantly, staring at him while he snickered.

"Sorry, I just—"

He stopped just when he had focused on her long enough to actually look at her. His face turned genuine and all joking was paused.

"What _happened?"_

"What do you mean, _what happened?"_ She demanded.

He spoke slowly, "Your face," his hand stretched out to touch the worn and inflamed skin under her bloodshot eyes. She smacked his hand away before it was even close.

"It doesn't matter. I didn't come here for your pity. I came to pay off a deal I made. Now hop to it."

Marshall looked at her for a moment, seeming to want to press the subject. Then he shrugged, respecting her privacy in a way that made Fionna very surprised.

"Well then let's go, my little Adventuress!" He smirked, making Fionna blush in rage.

He guided her around the wall of the Candy Castle until they came to a stop only a few feet from where Fionna had started.

"What the nuts are we doing here?!" Fionna protested. "It's just blank wa—"

"Ohoho!" Marshall wagged his finger at her, never failing to infuriate Fionna. "Don't be so sure, my naïve bunny rabbit."

"Enough with the nicknames, oka—"

"Sh."

Marshall Lee had put his ear up to the wall and held a finger to his mouth in silence. Fionna was about to speak, but the concentrated look on his face made her pause.

He listened for a few more heartbeats, before he pulled back again. Then he tapped his knuckles on the wall softly, making very little sound in the quiet night.

Suddenly, the same brick his ear had been on was pulled out from behind, revealing a pair of beady eyes. A rusty voice came out of the teeny hole.

"Password."

Marshall coughed, shooting Fionna a mockingly embarrassed glance. "Ahem!" He peered into the hole, eyebrows raised expectantly.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! Didn't see you there! Come on in!" The brick promptly slid back in and rumbling came from inside.

"Sorry about that," The vampire gave Fionna an apologetic grin, bearing his fangs.

"Oh, what? Are you like, special or something? Do you get some sort of special treatment?" Fionna snapped, trying to sound insulting. It didn't work so well on account of her voice, which was still scratchy from all the sobbing.

"You could put it that way," He replied smugly.

As if by magic, the ground beneath Marshall's floating feet fell away. Fionna looked over, seeing it was a trap-door-style entrance that was disguised as grass. Fionna grinned, always cheered up by the sight of a dark descending cave full of stairs that she hadn't explored.

"So the night club for all the undead creatures of the Candy Kingdom is _underneath_ the Candy Castle?!"

Marshall could see her eyes twinkle as she peered in. "Yep. Secret entrance, you like?"

"It's none of your business what I like," She said, wiping the smile off her face as best she could. But Marshall was smart, and he knew better. And he knew he could get her to crack.

"Well," He smiled, not at all deterred by her insults. "After you."

She stepped onto the first stair cautiously. She examined the inside as her eyes adjusted. The cave itself wasn't that big, but the stairs stretched long into an unseen darkness below. She continued, step after step, and suddenly the doors behind her slammed shut.

Her head whipped around, seeing only darkness in front of and behind her. She felt a cool hand at her back, guiding her down the stairs.

"It's fine, just a little dark."

"I'm not scared. And get your _hand off me!"_

"Are you sure? Blonde girls with bunny hats have a tendency to be pretty reckless. I wouldn't want you falling and making a scene."

"Shut up," She grumbled, letting him guide her further into the cave as a reply. Just as it seemed like there was only darkness, she saw a dim light seeping onto the floor ahead.

"You ready?" Marshall said in the darkness.

"What do you mean, _am I ready? _ She snapped.

"Well," Marshall opened the iron door slowly.

As it opened bright colorful lights poured out, flashing and blinking, along with the ear-shattering sounds of heavy bass music and people having a great time. Being underground, the music from the band that was located at the front of the cave traveled far and loud. Every corner of the cave was illuminated by psychedelic lights, enhancing the silhouettes of the numerous party-goers.

Seconds after Marshall pushed open the heavy door, all eyes turned to him.

"Marshall, you made it!" Ghost Prince pushed through the crowd, his odd voice ringing out as the music stopped and the partiers silenced.

"Yep," Marshall gave a little wave.

"Hey everyone!" Another ghost called out, "Marshall Lee is here!"

The partiers all cheered, causing the music to ramp back up and Marshall to grin crazily.

He nudged Fionna and they began to walk again, the crowd parting and then closing again in their wake. Fionna padded along beside her floating vampire date as everyone whooped and hollered. As they cruised through the club, Marshall was bombarded with everyone from ghosts to candy people to skeletons to goblins to Lumpy Space Prince. They all said things like "Nice to see you Marshall!" "Are you gonna lay down some sick jams?" "What's up, Vamp King?" "Look who it is!" "Can't believe you're here, dude!"

Fionna even caught one young ghost girl shouting "OH MY GLOB! Marshall! I love you!"

After a few moments of this, Marshall glanced down at his companion and smiled wickedly.

"Is this what you expected?!"

The adventuress refused to be impressed. She just scowled in reply to his smugness.

The vampire still didn't let her unresponsive behavior slow him. He pressed on, waving and winking at individuals in the crowd. Fionna wasn't stupid, she could see his gigantic ego, and the arrogant way that he was going about this party made her temper rise.

They finally reached the stage. The crowd cleared out leaving a circular clearing in the floor.

Marshall looked up. He dropped his hand away from Fionna and clapped three times.

In moments, four skeletons came marching out with furniture in their hands. Seconds later they left without a word, leaving a small round table, two ornate chairs, and a formally laid out table setting, complete with placemats.

Marshall smiled from ear to ear, inviting Fionna to sit. Fionna rolled her eyes and took a seat, unhappy with his over-the-top display.

"Aren't you going to si—"

"Just a sec, I gotta take care of something first." He patted her on the shoulder then disappeared into the crowd. She sat awkwardly in the only space of the club that wasn't swarming with people. They all partied around her, while she sat, unbothered by anyone.

A minute or two after Marshall left, a huge wave of cheers nearly blew Fionna's ears off.

She looked behind her and saw none other than the Vampire King himself standing atop the stage, looking even more pretentious than before.

He swung his guitar around and messed his hair a bit before taking a hold of the microphone.

"Hello, creatures of the night! Who's ready to get this party pumpin'?"

The crowd roared in response. Marshall let the mike go, and played a note on his guitar. Then two. Then three. His picked the notes carefully, meticulously, and the crowd watched in engaged silence. Marshall smiled, overconfident, as he finally gave in to the crowd's wishes. He began to play a whole song, instead of tempting them with single notes.

He turned his full focus on his guitar. He was so absorbed he didn't even notice that the only person he was really playing for was on her way out the door.


End file.
